OUR MISSION
Naples Jewish Congregation (NJC) is an inclusive, vibrant Reform congregation serving Southwest Florida. We embrace diversity, spirituality, friendship, learning, and social justice.
OUR VALUES
1. Kehillat Chesed– We are a Caring Community
We provide a warm and welcoming environment where all are equally valued as part of our Temple family. We embrace the dignity of all people.
Our community’s greatest strength and most precious resource are its members. We honor the range and variety of talents and experiences our members bring to the community and appreciate and rely on the support they give the congregation through participation and financial contributions,
2. Tikun Olam– We are responsible to actively and consciously repair the world
We follow the faith that calls us to righteousness and moral engagement within our world. We seek opportunities for our congregants, clergy, and staff to become intimately involved in activities that sustain our moral values.
We support social justice projects because we believe in fulfilling our biblical mandate to repair the world.
3. Talmud Torah– We are committed to Jewish Learning
We engage all communities in the study of the Torah.
We integrate Jewish practice into home and family life through education and creative programming.
We believe that lifelong learning begins early and never ends.
We honor Torah, wrestle with Jewish traditions and beliefs including God; and engage directly with difficult questions of our age.
We hold ourselves accountable to changing as we learn and grow.
4. Ahavat Yisrael– We are committed to a secure and just State of Israel
We are committed to the safety and vitality of the Jewish people and to a secure and just state of Israel as a home for all Jews and its inhabitants.
We affirm our special connection with the Jewish people everywhere.
We have no consensus on political solutions or their philosophical underpinnings.
5. Tefillah v’Milraei Kodesh – We worship together affirming personal autonomy in our worship and
We encourage our members to worship frequently not only on Shabbat and the festivals but also at times of personal stress and joy.
We seek to reach the highest and noblest in the human spirit through our worship.
We affirm personal autonomy in our ritual observance. We seek to educate our members in our rich traditions so that they may choose meaningful paths for themselves.
6. Kavod – We value the respect that must exist among our members and the spiritual and lay leaders of our congregation.
We honor the principle of “freedom of the pulpit.”
We value the education and experience of our staff.
We have an open governance structure that maximizes the effectiveness of our lay leadership.
Prayer in its many forms is central to our life as a community. We pray using language that speaks of God’s existence while recognizing that each of us as individuals understands God differently or not at all.
We are an American Jewish congregation and we value America’s freedoms that have benefitted Jews and Judaism while upholding Jewish values that spur us to protest policies and actions we see as wrong.
We encourage our members to increase their knowledge of Judaism, strengthen their Jewish identity, and continually grow as Jewish individuals.
We believe that sustaining an active and vibrant learning community strengthens our connection with each other and ensures our future as a people. L’dor V’dor from generation to generation.